Life-saving suit.



W. KOSTIW.

LIFE SAVING SUIT.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 3. I91].

Patented May 21, 1918.

FIG.2.

FIG. 1.

Wilfaalc'ew chm um,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM KOS'I'IW, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO HARRY KUDLAK, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

LIFE-SAVLN'G SUIT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 21, 1918.

Application filed November 3, 1917. Serial No. 200,079.

.sub'ect of the Emperor of Austria, residing at ufl'alo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Life-Saving Suits, of which the following .is a specification.

My primary object of the invention is the provision of a suit adapted to be worn for preventing a person from drowning when thrown into the water on'such occasions as when shipwrecked at sea, the device being readily inflated durin a time of danger.

further object of the invention is the provision of a life preserver in the form of a bathing suit having inflatable compartments provided with individual deflating means. whereby the degree of inflation may be regulated for each compartment.

A still further object of the device is to provide a suit having separate air-tight compartments extending throughout the same, arrangement being made for simultaneously inflating all of the compartments when found desirable, the suit being normally deflated and readily worn by a person, each compartment being separately deflated at will.

In the drawin forming a part of this application and 1n which like designating characters refer to corresponding parts throughout the several views Figure 1 is a front elevation of the device.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view thereof.

Fig. 8 is a transverse sectional view taken upon line III-III of Fig. 1.

. Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional detail view of-the communicating and deflating valve arrangement for the compartments.

5 is an enlar (1 lo 'tudinal sections and view of one o the va ve members,

Fi 6 is a transverse sectional view thereof ta en on line VIVI of Fig. 5.

5 '14.. r may.

It being designed to provide a garment that will prevent the wearer from drowning, the same maybe made in the form of a union or bathing suit 10 having spaced outer and inner walls 11 and 12 respectively'and forming an air space therebe tween. Encircling artitions 13 are provided between the we ls of the suit 10 f0 ing air-tight compartments 14 adapted for simultaneous inflation b means of a conduit 15 having an inlet pipe 16 and a valved mouth-piece 17 of any desired form.

Cylindrical valve members 18 are arranged in spaced relations within the conduit 14, one of the said valve members being provided for each of the compartments 14, an outlet 19 of the valve member registering with an inlet 20 of the adjacent,com-- partment. A ring pressed valve 21 is provided for ea h outlet 19, being carried on a stem 22 extending through a bushing 23 in the outer wall 11 of the suit 10 and having a knob 24 upon its outer free end.

The passageof air longitudinally throu h the valve member 18 provision of ports 25 in its opposite end Walls 26. A partition27 is arranged within the valve member having a normally seated spring pressed valve 28 closing a port therethrough, the said valve 28 having a stem 29. It will be understood that the inflation valve 17 may be readily positioned in the mouth of the wearer of the suit 10 and air forced into the conduit 15 by blowing into the same and the air in the conduit will pass longitudinally thereof through the perforations 25 of the valve members 18, the valves 28 being opened by the airpressure but preventing any backward passage of the air through the valve members. When the conduit 15 is filled with air under pressure from the valve 17, the valve 19 of any one or all of the compartments 14 may be manually opened by pulling the knob 24 thereof whereupon air from the conduit 15 will pass thrr ugh the openings 19 and 20 filling the adjacent compartment. Any back-firessurc from the com artments 14 to the conduit 15 will only e ect to equalize the pressure within the separate compartments, while the pressure of each separate compartment is regulated by means of the valves 19 operated by their respective stems 22. A closure pin 30 is arranged at the bottom of the con uit 15 permitting the escape 91 any water that may enter the said conduit. It will beseen that a serviceable life preserving suit is arran d which may be readily inflated and t e inflation thereof controlled as desired. One or more of the compartments 14 may be permitted to remain deflated if desired while the remainder are fully inflated. In this manner; the suit will accommodate the wearer and only a. poris permitted by t e tion such as the upper compartments thereof need be inflated until actual danger is encountered, or even until after the wearer has been thrown into the water.

What I claim as new is 1. A life saving suit provided with a plurality of encircling compartments, an air conduit communicating with all of said compartments, outlet valves for the compartments within the conduit normally held 1n closed position, and manually operated normally closed valves between the compartments and said conduit.

2. A life preserving device comprising a union suit having outer and inner Walls forming an air space therebetween, spaced partitions between the said outer and inner walls forming compartments, a conduit carried by the outer Wall having openings communicating with each of said compartments, an inflating valve at one end of the conduit, a closure plug at the other end of the conduit, a valve member for each. compartment arranged within the conduit having a side outlet in one side registering with the open ing in the conduit into the adjacent compartment, said valve niemher also having openings through the opposite ends thereof, a normally closed spring pressed valve for the side outlet of each valve member having a stem projecting outwardly of the outer wall of the suit, and having a pull knob on its outer end, and

valve member adapted for con- (tirolling the passage of air through the conuit.

3. A life reserving device comprising a union suit iiaving outer and inner Walls forming an air space therebetween, spaced partitions between the said outer and inner walls forming compartments, a conduit car ried by the outer wall having openings communicating with the respective compartments, an inflating valve at one end of the closure plug at the other end of the conduit, a valve member for each compartment an lnged within the conduit having an outlet opening registering with the inlet opening of the adjacent compartment and also having openings through the opposite ends thereof, a normally closed spring pressed valve for said outlet of each valve member projecting outwardly of the outer wall of the suit, a transverse partition within each valve member provided with an opening therethrough. and a spring pressed valve for each valve member normally closing the opening through said partition.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

WILLIAM-KOSTIW. 

